The on-site representation and oversight provision of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (NWPA), as amended, represents a continuation of a longstanding trend toward State and local government involvement in the administration of federal programs, and provides affected parties with a unique opportunity to safeguard the integrity of the Department of Energy's (DOE's) efforts to determine if Yucca Mountain, Nevada is a suitable site for the Nation's first high-level radioactive waste repository.